Desk



,Aug- 6 1940- R. JONES Err AL 2,210,721

DEsg

File'd July 2o. 19:59 s sheets-sheet 1 /6 /N VENTO/Q5 A Tra/@NE v5 -US 6, 1940-l .J. n. .Jonas Er A1. 2.210721 v I snssx y lFiled July 2b, 19:59 s sheets-sheet a t I A /N VEA/T025 Patented Augo, 1940 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE Jamestown, N. Y.,

assignors to Art Metal Construction Company, Jamestown, N. Y. "Application July 20, 1939, Serial No. 285,566

3 ciims.

This invention relates to desks suitable for use for example by clerks of insurance companies and other business concerns who'have to make out or type matter on various forms or sheets 5 of different kinds or sizes, and one object of the invention is to provide adesk of an improvedl novel combination of parts whereby the various necessary sheets or articles of stationery are readily accessible and in convenient reach of 1U the person operating a typewriter or other machine at the desk and Without the necessity for opening and closing drawers or the like, or having form racks or holders placed. on or about the desk, and whereby the desk can be conl" venently and comfortably used by the person for performing other work. Hereinafter the machine with which the desk is equipped is referred to as a typewriter, but it is not intended thereby to restrict the invention 20 to the use of a typewriting machine only with the desk.

Another object of the invention is to provide a desk having an exposed or dat top affording an unobstructed working surface and having at one end below the top a pedestal or compartment for housing a typewriter which is mounted so that it can be shifted to and supported in position for operation in front of said compartment, and also having a case or holder for forms or other necessary stationery arranged beneath the desk top-between the typewriter compartment and theopposite end of the desk so that it can be moved back out of the way to aord ample leg room for aperson when working on the desk top and can be pulled forwardly to a position in which the forms or other articles therein are in convenient reach of the person when sitting sidewise in front of the desk in position to operate the typewriter. l

Further objects and advantages of the invention will appear from the following specification of the preferred embodiment of the invention, shown in the accompanying drawings, and the 45 novel features of the invention are set forth in the appended claims.

In said drawings:

Fig. 1 is a perspective view of a desk embodying our invention, showing the position of the parts I0 when the stationery case is in its rearward position.

Fig. 2 is a fragmentary longitudinal sectional elevation thereof on line 2-2, Fig. 6.

Fig. 3 is a perspective view of the desk with the '66 parts in position for operating the typewriter.

Fig. 4 is a front elevation, partly broken away, of the stationery case.

` Fig. 5 is a sectional plan view on line 55, Fig. 2, showingl the guide means for the stationery case.

Fig. 6 is a transverse sectional elevation of the desk, on the plane of line 6 6, Fig. X1.

In the construction shown in the drawings the desk is provided with a at top I6 and with a compartment Il at one end of the desk, for instance the left hand end, beneath the top, in which a typewriter or other machine is housed and mounted so that it can be pulled forwardly out of and raised to an' operative position in front of the compartment, with the machine preferably facing sidewise toward the far end of the desk. Preferably, as shown, the machine compartment simulates and occupies the position of the usual desk pedestal and has a front opening I2 closed by a door I3 which is hinged at its outer upright edge to swing outwardly to permit the machine to be placed in operative position in front of the compartment.

Supporting legs I 4, of any suitable form and construction, may be provided for the desk, as at the four corners thereof, and the two legs at the end of the desk remote from the typewriter compartment II are preferably connected by an upright hollow end wall I5.

Arranged beneath the desk top, between the typewriter compartment Il and the end wall I5, or opposite end of the desk, is a case or holder I6 in which'the required forms and other stationery or accessories are arranged in appro- /priate pigeonholes or compartments so as to be readily accessible to the user of the desk. As shown, this case is made with a wide shallow horizontal compartment I1 substantially at its mid-height in which is a shallow drawer or tray I8, and below this compartment the case is provided with shelves I9 arranged in two tiers separated by a vertical partition 2B, and with pigeonholes 2l at one side; while the upper part of the case is provided with shelves 22 arranged in two tiers separated by a vertical partition 23 and, at one side of one tier of the shelves 22, with a compartment closed by a door 24 with `-a lock for the safe-keeping of desired articles. The shelves provide a number of shallow compartments which may be of different dimensions suitable for different sized forms or sheets and thedrawer and other compartments form suitable containers ior other necessary articles. According to the case construction shown (see Fig.

2) the shelves I9 and 22 rest on Z-shaped metal strips 25 secured as by spot welding on the end and partition walls of the case, each shelf being prevented from lifting oi of its supporting strips 25 by the bottom flanges of the strips 25 for the next shelf above. Vertical front strips 2B, detachably secured in place at the ends of the shelves, as by screws, removably retain the shelves in place in the case. 'I'he case could be made -of other construction and with compartments of different form and arrangement, but preferably having the sheet compartments open at the front of the case.

The case. I6 is mounted to slide or move forwardly and rearwardly in the desk beneath the top I0 so that it can-be pushed back to occupy the position shown in Fig. 1, in which the case leaves ample leg room in front of it for the person sitting at the desk facing it, when'it is desired to use the top of the desk for working thereon; or the case can'be pulled forward to the position adjacent to the front of the desk, shown in Fig. 3, in which its contents are readily accessible and can be conveniently reached by the person when sitting sidewise in front of the desk and operating the typewriter. For this purpose the case is preferably hung from or supported by rollers or wheels at the upper portions of its opposite ends arranged to travel on stationary horizontal track rails or guides located at the opposite ends of the case under the desk top.

As shown in the drawings, two rollers 28 are arranged at each end of the case I6 to turn on ball bearings having axle studs 29y xed to a metal supporting strip 30 which is fixed to the adjacent end wall of the case by spot welding or in any other suitable manner. The two rollers at one end of the case are arranged to roll on a rail formed by a metal channel strip 3l fixed by spot welding or otherwise to the inner vertical wall 32 of the typewriter compartment ii. 'Ihe bottom flange of this rail strip has an upturned inner edge 33 to prevent lateral disengagement of the rollers from the rail. An angle strip 34, secured, as by spot welding to the compartment wall beneath the channel rail strip, maybe used to support the lower flange of the rail against deflection, and the metal strip 30 on which the Wheels are journalled may be provided with a bottom flange projecting beneath the rail supporting strip 34 to prevent the rollers from being lifted high enough to pass over the upturned edge of the bottom flange of the rail. The supporting rollers 28 at the opposite end of the case, and the rail 3'I on which they roll can be similarly constructed and mounted. Preferably each of the track rails 3l is provided at its front and rear ends with yielding stops or bumpers for engagement of a cooperating part on the case to noiselessly arrest forward and rearward movement of the case. 'I'he stops or bumpers shown consist of pads 35 of felt or the like, the rear pad being held in place by an inwardly and forwardly bent rear end portion of the rail strip, and the front pad 35 being secured between the web of the rail strip and a Z-shaped clip 35 removably secured to the front end of the rail strip, as by screws 31 Awhich permit the removal of the clips and bumpers to allow the introduction of the casesupporting rollers into and their removal from the channel rails. 38 is a handle on the front of the case I6 for pulling it out to its forward position.

The typewriter or other machine, which is indicated by dot and dash outline at 40 in Fig. 3,

is preferably secured to a shelf or support 6| suitably mounted to adapt it and the machine to be pulled forwardly from within the compartment I I and swung or raised to an operative position in front of the compartment. For this purpose the shelf Il can be mounted as disclosed in application for U. S. Letters Patent illed January 2l, 1939, Serial No. 252,160, by J. R.. Jones (one of the present applicants) jointly with Victor A. Gronberg and Levi M. Hultberg. As disclosed in that application, the shelf 4| is hinged to swing vertically on a slide mounted to move forwardly and rearwardly in the compartment Il at the outer side thereof, so that by pulling the slide forwardly until the shelf 4I is out in front of the compartment, the shelf with the machine can be swung upwardly and secured with the machine in a horizontal operative position facing sidewise toward the remote end of the fde'sk. The means, per se, for mounting the machine form no part of the present invention and are not shown or described herein. They can be of the construction disclosed in said application or of any suitable construction which permits the machine to be housed in the compartment and withdrawn therefrom and supported as desired in an operative position, preferably facing sidewise, in front of the compartment.

With the described arrangement and combination of the parts of the desk, the typlst or operator can slt in front of the desk, either facing the desk for working thereon, or when the machine has been placed in operative position in front of the desk, it is only necessary for the operator to turn in or swing her chain so as to face the machine to be in position for operating the machine. When the machine has been placed in position for use and the case I5 pulled to its forward position, the contents of the case will be in convenient reach of and readily accessible to the operator while sitting sidewise in front of the desk in position to operate the machine.

The end of the desk l D at which the typewriter compartment li is located is preferably wider fore and aft than the remainder of the desk, or,

as shown, that portion of the desk top Il) which overlies the machine compartment Il extends forwardly beyond the front edge of or is wider than the remaining portion of the top. This L-fonn of the desk top is preferred, since thus ample elbow or arm room is afforded the operator when sitting sidewise in front of the desk in position to operate the typewriter. When the stationary case is in its forward position at the front of the desk, it does not project forwardly beyond the front edge of the narrower portion of the desk top so that, in this position, the case will not interfere with the free action of the person operating the typewriter.

We claim as our invention:

1. A desk having a top, a pedestal located beneath the top at one end 0f the desk forming a compartment having anA unobstructed front opening of a height which is a greater part of the height of the pedestal, said compartment being adapted to enclose a typewriter or the like mounted for shifting from a position within the compartment to an operative positioninY front thereof with the typewriter facing sidewise toward the far end of the desk, and a case for holding stationery mounted to move forwardly portion of the top located above said case being of less depth fore and aft than said pedestal to afford room for a typist sitting in front of saidv case facing` said typewriter.

2. A desk according to claim 1 in which said case is of less depth fore and aft than the portion of the top thereover and is mounted to shift forwardly and rearwardly in an upright position and is divided into various compartments opening at the front of the case.

3. A desk having a top, a pedestal beneath the top at one end of the desk forming a single unobstructed chamber having an unobstructed front opening of a height which is a greater part of the height of the pedestal, said chamber being adapted to enclose a typewriter or the like mounted for shifting from a position within the compartment to an operative position in front disposed beneath the desk top at the upper por-v tions of the opposite ends of the case, the portion of the top-located above said case being of less depth fore and aft than said pedestal to afford room for a typist sitting in front of said case facing said typewriter, and said case being of less depth fore andv aft than the portion of the desk top overlying the case.

JAMES R. JONES. CARL. L. ELOFSON. 

